Last Saturday March 5 saw Rye residents answer the national call to “Clean for the Queen” from the Keep Britain Tidy Group to mark the Queen’s 90th birthday, officially celebrated in June.
Town Steward Nicky Ledger planned the operation with military precision and dispatched six teams of litter pickers around the town with a seventh organised by the Tilling Green Residents Association, pictured above. The session began at 8am and finished at 3pm.
In the first organised event of its type by the Town Steward, Rye’s ‘pickers’ were to be seen working in a variety of locations. Areas covered were the town centre, the Salts, Valley Park, Strand Quay, Gibbet’s Marsh and riverside paths, Tillingham Avenue and Love Lane, plus the railway station and car parks.
A total of 40 bags of assorted rubbish were collected during the day and a positive reaction was reported by the pickers from residents and visitors alike.
Nicky said: “This is not a one off. Future events will be organised to cover as much of the town as possible on a regular basis. I am also hoping to arrange a bigger team of pickers to ‘blitz’ any areas in the town needing extra clearing”.
The most unusual object found during the day was spotted outside Rye Art Gallery in the High Street – a starfish (shown here). Don’t ask!
If you would like to join this enthusiastic band of volunteers email Nicky at ryetownsteward@gmail.com
Photos : Keith Buckland and Ray Prewer